bumpy
Americanadjective
-
of uneven surface; full of bumps.
a bumpy road.
-
full of jolts.
a bumpy ride.
-
causing jolts.
Bumpy air shook the airplane.
-
having many difficulties or failures; full of ups and downs.
He had a rather bumpy career before he settled down in his present job.
adjective
-
having an uneven surface
a bumpy road
-
full of jolts; rough
a bumpy flight
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of bumpy
Explanation
Bumpy means not smooth, as in covered in lumps and bumps, like a bumpy path that makes your car bounce, or a bumpy road to getting your parents to lend you the car. Anything covered in bumps is bumpy, whether it’s a road, the skin of a toad, or the surface of the birthday cake you made for your brother. It can also describe a ride full of unexpected jolts and bumps: "It was a bumpy journey along the mountain passes in her Jeep." Figuratively, bumpy can also describe a difficult process: "What a bumpy ride that was, getting my visa to travel to China!"
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It has been a bumpy return to the UK for Prince Harry, in a visit promoting the Invictus Games for injured service men and women.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
"Some grass fields might be nice, the majority of the fields here are turf. However, the times I've played on grass it's usually pretty bumpy and hard," said Benson.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
GIMBEL: The transition is always bumpy for some people.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
It has been a long and bumpy road to this point for Rockstar.
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026
As Simon read, Penelope’s skin turned all goose bumpy.
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
It’s time to prepare your retirement portfolio for a bumpier ride.
From Barron's ● Mar. 18, 2026
Wall Street is inching toward a historic milestone just as the ride is getting bumpier in the stock market.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 15, 2026
Investors riding a rare biotech recovery don’t need to jump off the train, but they should expect a bumpier ride.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 4, 2025
"The bumpier, irregular surface of the virulent strains exposes parts of the virus that are normally hidden, allowing certain antibodies to attach more easily," Dr. Bibby said.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 27, 2025
It was bumpier up in the sky than down on the grass.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
This latest one, on the welfare state, comes after Sir Keir Starmer has endured his bumpiest days yet in Downing Street.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2025
The bumpiest place to sit is in the tail area of the plane, he said, though it doesn’t make a lot of a difference.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 19, 2022
“There’s like 100 bumps on one straight. It’s the bumpiest roller-coaster ride ever.”
From Seattle Times ● May 27, 2022
Now, he couldn't apologize enough for his latest misstep in what's become the bumpiest jump to the NFL ever attempted by a college coaching great.
From Fox News ● Oct. 5, 2021
It was like being on the bumpiest, scariest roller-coaster ride!
From "Case of the Sneaky Snowman: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #5" by Carolyn Keene
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
